The Canticles of Eve, Book I: Rebirth
by Cass-The-Nerd
Summary: Eve isn't her real name, but it doesn't matter anymore. When her mother brought her here, they gave her a new one. She lied and faked for as long as possible, but time runs out. She baptized them all in her blood and fire. When all that remained was the ashes, her world erupted in green and changed forever.
1. A Liar and a Coward and a Thief

My time has run out. All the lies I've spun and the tales I've told have stopped doing their job. The Savior will be patient no longer, he will have me at the next festival or he will kill me, but my clever words can't protect me. The lust he has had for me since I was barely and a woman will not be held off any longer and I'm not sure if I can bring myself to end my own life to avoid it.

I should be sorry, Mom. I should be sorry that I'm a liar and a coward and a thief. I should be sorry that I've become everything you never wanted me to and that I practically embody every trait you hated about Father and the outside world, but I'm not. I cannot bring myself to be sorry when you taught me no better.

When you ran away from your problems and uprooted me in the process, you proved yourself a coward. When you told me life would be better here, that I would be safe, you proved yourself a liar. And when you were found dead in your cabin by your own hand, you ripped away any happiness I had left and you proved yourself a thief. You were no better than the people who drove us here, and then you left me alone to suffer at their hands.

I am not sorry. I will _never_ be sorry. I do not care if I am to die alone or in pain or at my own hand. You have doomed me to this life, to the choices I must make. If anyone is to blame for who I became and what I must do, it is you. When I die, if there is an afterlife and you were not sent to heaven while I am doomed to hell, do not think you can judge me for all the terrible things I have done.

And if I am to admit one final thing mom, it is that I am scared. The Savior tells us not to fear death and that it is only a gateway to the everlasting peace of heaven. I do not know that I fear death, but I know that I fear dying. I fear pain and the experiences that I have not had a chance to live ripped from my grasp. I fear the end of my life and maybe I do fear what comes afterward.

I am scared, Mom, and I hate you for leaving me to deal with this on my own.


	2. Baptized

I have never stolen anything before today. It was much easier than I ever imagined. With the semi-panic for the festival, the eyes that followed me around like a predator stalking their prey. For the first time in several years, since I was given the name Eve six years ago, I walked around without constant fear of the nosy women who wanted nothing more than to get me punished.

I remembered that dreadful incident where The Savior thought that we had become too greedy and wanted to teach us a lesson. He had some cookies made that were laced with some sort of drug. Though not deadly, many of the children and younger adults were sick for days. I had to have some sort of hope that there was some leftover drug in the kitchens that I could use just a dose of. A little something to keep me down for the festival, so the savior would sleep with some other girl.

It was much easier to sneak into the kitchens than I thought it would be. I had to be quick and careful, the opposite of what I usually was. I waited in the small alley between the kitchens and the dining hall for the cooks to exit for their break. Sticking my shoe in the door before it locked shut, I silently slipped inside.

I sprung into action, going through cabinet after cabinet as quick as I could. I needed to find something, anything that looked like it could be the drug I was looking for. Pills or a liquid or something. _Anything._ I was desperate, I couldn't go to the festival, I couldn't sleep with him.

I was so consumed with finding what I was looking for that I didn't notice the other pair of footsteps until my wrist was stopped just before I could grab the vial I was looking for. The grip was cold and bony and I knew exactly who it was before I turned around. Mother Prudence looked at me with a grin that sent shivers down my spine.

"Well, Well, look at that. A child just begging for punishment. This is the final time me or anyone else here will suffer your insolence."

Before I could jerk my hand away, she tightened her grip to near painful levels and shrieked.

"Thief! Thief! There's a thief in the Kitchens!"

The door smashed open almost instantly, people from the surrounding area rushing in at Prudence's frantic call. I knew it was a matter of time before two of the armed guards entered to take me away so they could decide my punishment. Mother Prudence jerked my hand behind my back and turned me to face the crowd that had gathered. Everyone had these almost sad looks on their faces, but something about them was fundamentally wrong.

Underneath the concerned appearance, their eyes eyes held barely contained delight. Most of the people who had gathered were Mother Prudence's little group who had hated me ever since the Savior started taking an interest in me. Women who wanted nothing more than to further themselves or their daughters and saw me as an immediate obstacle to that.

The people began to clear quickly at the shouting coming from the guards. They quickly looked over the scene and grabbed me, taking to precaution to be gentle. One of them attempted to push the harpies away while the other took the coarse rope they carried and tied my wrist far tighter than was necessary.

Any movement of my arms let the rope dig into my wrist and leave marks that would much longer than the rope remained. Too much struggling and I was sure I would bleed. A hand secured itself around my elbow and pushed me forward, holding me up when I tripped over my feet. The guard that was holding me started a quick paced march to the other side of the compound where the Holding House was.

Most of the people who were out and about doing their daily tasks when they saw the guards marching through. Most of them seemed concerned for me, because it never meant anything good when someone was being escorted like this. I kept my head down, all the brashness I normally walk around with was cowed at being caught and humiliated like this.

Some of the crowd started talking among themselves, saying things that concerned me.

 _What'd she do this time?_

 _Do you think she's finally getting her comeuppance?_

 _Is she going to be okay?_

 _I don't want her to get hurt_

 _Doing something this dumb right before the festival, does she have a death wish?_

 _Doesn't she know they punish people more harshly before the festival, I thought she was smarter than that_

 _Eve, what have you done?_

The commotion drew the Savior out of whatever meeting he was it, I saw him rush over with an odd expression on his face. I couldn't puzzle out what he was thinking before I shoved indoors. The taller of the two guards took hold of my chin and put his face close to mine.

"My, my. Looks like we will have a show for the festival. A dirty little thief trying to steal extra food. I wonder how many lashes they'll give you"

My eyes widened. I had never gotten lashes before, it was always isolation or extra chores. This wasn't the plan.

"Look at that scared little face of yours, so frighted of a little beating. Shouldn't have been a greedy little whore, then."

I grimaced at the language he was using.

"What? Don't like being called what you are? Don't think we haven't noticed the look you and the Savior give each other."

"It- it's not- it's not like that."

"I don't want to hear your excuses."

He tossed me forward, my knees landing harshly on the dirty ground. The door was shut behind me, leaving me with my hands tied behind my back and lost in total darkness. The locks clicking shut sealed my fate.

* * *

I had leaned my head on the wall, not being able to lie down or rest in any comfortable sitting position due to my hands stuck behind me. It was cold in here and I couldn't give myself any warmth or even adjust the dress I was wearing. I assumed it had become night because there were no more sounds, not even the occasional lone steps going one place to another.

I wanted desperately to sleep and let the time pass by, get to the part where they humiliated me in front of me everyone and punished me. However, my arms ached and there was no way for me to get comfortable. The dead silence of the night was so creepy that I was acutely aware of every sound I could hear.

I could hear the slight crunch of gravel under shoes and strained my ears to hear if they were coming near. I didn't need out, even if I wanted it, I just wanted my wrist untied. The rope had dug into my wrist and caused me agony every time they shifted. The sound of hinges squeaking open caused me to sit up and the clicking of the locks had me turning towards the door.

There wasn't a lot of light outside, but I could make out the silhouette of someone entering. They said nothing, just kneeled down besides me and cut through the rope. I pulled my wrists up and ran my thumbs over the indents, hissing at the pain.

I could feel the hands of whoever came to save me running lightly over my arms, murmuring into my ear.

"Oh, Eve. Evie, Evie, Evie. What have you done? Doing something so silly even I couldn't protect you from the consequences. Please, let me protect you. Let me save you from the public beating Prudence is planning."

No. No, no, no, no, no. Not him, not now. Not with nowhere to run and nothing to say to save me. I tried to push away, but he had his hands on me and a tough grip on my arm.

"Please, I love you so much, Evie. Just let me love you. Carry my child I can make sure no one like Prudence will ever dare challenge you again."

I thrashed, throwing my head back into his nose. His hands jerked off me, going up to cup his now bleeding nose. I got up and ran to the other side of the room. Ready to do anything to keep his hands off me.

"I see how it is, just like you mother. I ruined her life too, just so she wouldn't speak out against me. I'm sorry it came to this."

He got up a left, shutting the door and leaving me in darkness.

* * *

It could've been days or weeks before I was brought out and sentenced. The last day of the festival was held on the last day of the season, which was weeks after I was thrown in here.

Though I wasn't in total darkness, I hadn't seen another person since that first night. They gave me food what I thought was twice a day, but I'm pretty sure it was drugged since I got really sleepy after eating and normally passed out.

The cheers and cries of the people outside told me they were all having fun. I was becoming more and more grateful for the drugged food, at least the time passed faster. I was still groggy from the last dose I had gotten when two of the guards stormed in.

"Get up, it's time for your punishment"

They dragged me outside to the stage. The crowd became utterly silent as I was dragged up to the stage. There was a large post up at the top and I knew exactly what was in store for me. The dutiful marches of the guards behind me echoed through the stairs. The closer I got the more I began to fear my fate.

There were horrifying looking leather cuff with chains attached to the post, the chains looked drilled through, so they couldn't be ripped out. There were a number of implements laid out on the stage: a classic leather whip, another whip with a blade on the tip, a shorter looking whip with multiple 'tails' on it, and one of those but with blades on it again.

One of the guards took out a knife and cut down the back of my dress, revealing my back and bra band to the crowd. I was shoved forward and the guard locked my hands into the leather cuffs, stretching my hands uncomfortably high over my head. It wasn't until the savior, accompanied by Mother Prudence walked on stage, that I knew there was not going to be any recovering from this.

"As you all know, the standard punishment for theft from the flock is 20 lashes, but this child has become insolent and disobedient and refuses to listen to any guidance. For this we will be sentencing her to 30 lashes instead, Mother Prudence proselytized to the crowd. "However, this lost little duckling has not only stolen from me and you and our savior. She, in her perceived moral superiority, has become disrespectful to our savior. For these crimes, she will face another 20 lashes. All of these must be taken with dignity, without begging for mercy because she deserves none."

Mother Prudence then turned to me.

"Eve, for your crimes against the flocks and the savior, you will receive 50 lashes in consecutive order. Every time you beg for forgiveness before all 50 lashes have been delivered, another will be added, because you prove that you do not understand your lesson." She turned to the crowd again, "Because her crimes have been against all of you as much as the savior, you all shall decide the implement of her punishment. When the guards hold up each implement, shout for the one you want."

I closed my eyes, not wanting to see as the few friends I had here were forced to participate in my torture. I could hear cheer and shouts and I assumed the guards held up each individual implement. I took a deep breath and attempted to stand up, to relieve the strain on my arms.

When all the sound died down, I could hear the Savior call out.

"The cat o' nine tails it is! I will call the number for each stroke, to give her time to regret all of her crimes."

I took a deep breath, dreadfully awaiting the first stroke.

"One!"

I could hear it sailing through the air and there was no real way to prepare myself. I shrieked, the loud sound echoing through the compound. There was a stall and some murmuring, before my head was jerked back by hair and a bit of leather tied over my head. I cried out, the pain of my scalp radiating over my whole head.

"Two!"

My skin was raw, there was nothing I could do to protect myself. Nothing I could do to save myself from this torture. I was going to die here. It was what the Savior and Prudence orchestrated. The leather cut into my skin more than I thought it would and I wasn't sure if my back or wrist would bleed first.

"Three!"

I bent away from the whip, to no avail, and could feel the blood dripping down my back.

"Four! Five! Six!"

Three more in rapid succession, followed by a whole minute of waiting.

"Seven!"

I couldn't beg, couldn't ask for mercy from this hell. They had written the rules to this cruel game and made it impossible for me to win. I tried to lose myself in my mind, to do anything but feel every cruel stroke. I tried to reconstruct mom's face from memory, her red hair and green eyes, the looks I was so glad I inherited.

"Eight!"

I was sure my back look nothing more like a flayed slab of meat at this point. I tried to remember Audrey's face, my childhood friend that I had not seen in 12 years. There were so many details that escaped me, the curve of her nose and the exact color of her eyes. I missed her, she was everything I never could be.

"Thirteen!"

I must have missed the calls for those strokes, I didn't even really feel the pain anymore. The blood ran down my back in straight up rivers and pooled on the skirt of my dress. I was so angry.

Angry at all of them.

At the Savior for manipulating me.

At Prudence for turning them all against me.

At myself for being so cocky.

At all of my friend for stopping this.

My anger was a palpable feeling running through my veins, burning me up from the inside out.

"Jesus above!"

I barely heard the exclamation of the guard over my heart beating in my ears. The sound of that infernal tool dropping against the wooden stage. Footsteps rushing over and more swearing behind me. A female voice muttered something inaudible. I couldn't tell, I didn't care. My blood was boiling, my anger a physical thing.

I pushed that bit out of my mouth and screamed to the heavens above. Feeling the cuffs on my wrists heat and smoke and blister the skin underneath them. I gave them a yank, trying to get away from the pain. I ripped the cuff straight out of the posts, watching the flames flickering over my fingers. Everyone was screaming around me - no, they were screaming at me.

I smiled, that wicked, vicious smile that held everything I always wanted to make these people feel. I turned a faced the crowd, at least, what was left of it. Some had ran, trying to find a way out. Trying to get the sealed gates open. I laughed and burned like hell brought to life. It was a slow steady pace that brought me to where they were clustered, where they were gathered like cattle for the slaughter.

"You all think that you're better than me, that you can stand by and watch me suffer."

There was no defence, they all knew they had committed a crime, that they had been no better than Prudence and her sycophants. I lifted my right had, the leather charred and the skin ruined, and felt the flames flicker over. They screamed so beautifully, they all paid for their sins like I paid for the ones I never committed.

I marched on, I needed to end all of the people who let me suffer.

It was Prudence who I came across next.

She didn't turn, didn't even look at me. I ringed her in flame and watched her scamper back like a dog.

"You think yourself a saint, don't you, but you're nothing like them after all."

She finally turned, finally looked at the monster she created.

"You- you don't have to do this. I just- I just wanted the best for- for Hope."

I didn't care, I couldn't care for her. After the hell she made my life, after the hell she just put me through. A simple snap of my fingers and her hair was in flames. Her screams were so delightful as her golden hair burned up. It reached her head far too quickly, her skin smoked and burned. It was too slow, I wanted her dead then. It didn't take long, not really.

I was getting tired of this, tired of the hunt. There were only those clustered at gate and those who wanted to hide from my fury.

Another group, another herd of sheep. It was so easy to watch them die, to hear their delicious screams. There was only one more person I wanted to hear suffer. The Savior, the man who ruined my life.

I had only one idea where he might be, and I knew I would be right. He was nothing if not predictable and predatory. Right in his tent, trying to grab his things and run, leaving all the people who depended on him. I didn't even want to talk to him or hear his sorry excuses. It was so simple to create a wall of flame at the entrance of his dumb cabin and then set the rest aflame. His panicked screams came soon after.

I wanted to light the whole place on fire and watch everything that made me suffer for 12 years die. There was a crunch, a whimper. I whirled around ready to roast whoever survived.

"Eve. Eve, please."

I knew that voice, it was Charity, one of the girls I grew up with and my closest friend.

"Eve, can you hear me."

"Charity, why didn't you stop them?"

"I tried, I tried so hard Eve. For a week, I wouldn't shut up about where you went and what they were going to do with you. I only stopped because they were going to hurt him."

 _Him._ Her son, Diligence. Dil, she always called him. No older than three years old and I just took away his father and the only world he ever knew.

"What have I done, Char, what have I done?"

"It's going to be okay, Evie, we'll get you out of here."

"No. You can't. Run, take Dil and get as far away as possible. Leave me here."

She simply stared at me, at the few remaining embers burning on my hands."

" _GO!_ "

And she did, she ran as fast as she could while carrying her baby.

My hands were shaking as I took the blackened cuffs off my wrists, where the skin was equally charred and black, cracking off and bleeding. I screamed. I just killed everyone in my rage, _everyone._ It must have been hours before I looked up. The blood still dripping off my wrists, I called up the last ember in my blood and burnt the entire compound down. Before the flames could consume me as well, my world exploded in green.


	3. Wrath of the Heavens

I never expected pain when I died. What I expected when I thought of Hell was fire and brimstone, endless burning pain for the sins I committed. Hell was not a dull, constant ache permeating my body. But it felt like every part of my body decided not to work. Every movement felt like one hundred little needles sticking into my body.

It was actually shockingly cold, a breeze blew relentlessly over my body. Opening my eyes revealed a world unlike anything I had ever seen before. A green sky over a black barren landscape. Fog rolling in and obscuring everything not 3 feet in front of me.

I pulled myself to my feet, despite my body's protest. If this wasn't the afterlife, I had to find something or someone to help me.

One step at the time was the best motto here, pushing myself forward. I brought my arm up to my eyes, hoping to see something. What I saw was a bright green light on the top of what seemed like mountain. A rocky path leading the way. I pushed through the green and yellow smog, trekking forward.

I walked and walked for what seemed like hours, the murky sky hiding any markers of how far I'd actually gone. When I finally reached the incline and started to go up, screams met my ears. I turned only to find something straight out of a nightmare.

Women, many of them, with charred black skin glowing with red hot fire from the inside. Their eyes and mouth and the cracks along their skin all glowing with the demonic flame. I turned and ran from them, as fast as I possibly could. But the incline soon turned nearly vertical, with only a few jagged rocks to help me climb.

I was not strong by any means, but the fear coursing through my veins gave me strength. The demons behind me we fast and relentless, just at my heels no matter how fast I went.

The beautiful glowing light was actually a woman, something come to help me. She reached her hand down, and I extended my left hand. Trying to reach her, trying to get away from those things. But my hand exploded in the bright green, my world once again consumed with that color.

I landed on more rocks and heard the pounding of footsteps and saw the glint of metal before everything went black.

* * *

At the sight of the ruins of the Temple of Sacred Ashes, the soldiers there knew they were only likely to encounter the errant demon. The last thing they were expecting was a human girl, no bigger than an elf. She looked as if she had been through the void and back. The back of her dress ripped open revealing her back, which was covered in crisscrossed freshly healed scars.

Appearing out of the rift, she collapsed in a heap. A soldier called out to the others before they could surround her with swords drawn. She didn't jump into an attack, nor did she burst into flames of rage or the grotesque form of an abomination. When safety was assured, she was hauled into the village as the sole survivor of the explosion. She would face justice there.

* * *

 **My head was foggy, like my ears were filled with cotton and my brain was stuck in quicksand. Moving any part of me quickly proved to be a nightmare since it was apparent that I had been sleeping hunched over.**

Sleeping? That's not right, I was- I was somewhere weird. Somewhere with a green sky and a glowing woman. And my hand! My hand was green and glowing. What happened to me? I can't remember. Why can't I remember?

As my vision slowly returned to focus, I saw my hand. I pulled my hand up and noticed why it felt oddly heavy. Both my hands were attached to each other with thick metal cuffs separated by an iron bar that kept me from moving them closer together or farther apart. It was then that I noticed the men around me, swords pointed at me. I opened my mouth to ask what was happening, trying to clamp down on the panic building inside me.

That's when my hand exploded. Not literally but for a moment it was covered in a crackling green light. I gasped out, for one moment the pain was unbearable, and then it was gone. Trying to figure out what was happening to me and what had already happened to me, the door banged against the wall as it was thrown open, bringing my attention from my introspection to the two women who had now entered.

One of them, in a purple hood simply looked at me while the other made her presence known at my back. She leaned over me and spoke almost directly into my ear.

"Tell me again why we shouldn't kill you now."

She stood up straight and began to walk around me, so I could see her full stature.

"The conclave is destroyed. Everyone who attended is dead. Except for you."

She emphasized that last part with a finger pointed at me. After that, she didn't speak again and the other woman made no move to explain further. Both of them leveled icy gazes and me, and I knew I had to say something.

"I- I don't know what you're talking about. The conclave? I've never heard of a conclave. What are you talking about?"

The words rushed out of my mouth before I could stop them, betraying my confusion and shock. The one who seemed to be in charge of this little interrogation reached down a grabbed my left hand, jerking it up as far as it would go in the cuffs.

"Don't play dumb with me. Explain _this_."

As if for good measure, my hand flared green again. Emphasizing something that I simply couldn't explain.

"I can't explain anything. I don't know where I am or who you are or what's going on."

"What do you mean you _can't_?"

"I mean that I really have no idea what's happening. I don't know what that is or how it got there."

It was if she finally snapped, all the barely contained rage that had been brewing under her skin exploded in one moment. She grabbed onto my shoulders, jerking me back and forth and pulling her face far too close for comfort.

"You're lying!"

It seemed that now was the time that the purple hooded woman chose to intervene, pushing the forceful woman off me until she was a good distance away.

"We need her, Cassandra."

Cassandra. That must be the shorter haired one's name. The one I could now see as red-headed turned towards me.

"I don't know what happened. I didn't- I didn't kill anyone."

Yes, I did. I can hear their screams in my ear. I'm not innocent, but I'm pretty sure that I'm innocent of what they're accusing me of.

No less direct that Cassandra, she began to speak.

"Do you remember what happened? How this began?"

I tried to wrack my memory, conjure up all the details that were escaping me.

"I woke up and I tried to find someone to help me, everything looked so strange. Then things-" A shudder wracked my body at the memory of those things, completely burnt up and still burning. "-started chasing me. I ran as fast as I could. Then there was a woman, she was- she was reaching out to me. Then- then nothing."

I shook my head to emphasize the point.

"A woman?" She seemed shocked, "Are you sure?"

"Almost positive, but I don't remember what happened after that."

She continued to look at me, almost contemplative. Cassandra stepped in front of her and broke off her gaze.

"Go to the forward camp, Leliana. I will take her to the rift."

Leliana nodded almost imperceptibly and backed away, leaving the room. Cassandra came up and began to undo the locks on the cuffs, freeing my hands.

"What did happen? You guys haven't told me anything."

Of course, that freedom didn't last long. I was still an accused murderer. Cassandra tied my wrists together, tight enough that I couldn't separate them. It was only then that my brain finally registered that I couldn't feel the skirt of my dress on my feet or the cold air on my back. Instead, a quick look over my person had me noticing that I was in heavy wool clothes and knee-high boots. Something heavy for what time of year the festival took place.

"It will be easier to show you."

* * *

I quickly decided that the building above the dungeons is a church. One filled with women in white and red robes who glared at me like they could bring God's wrath upon with their eyes alone. Neither Cassandra nor I say a single thing, though she seems less like the wants to kill me and more like days of stress and bearing down on her.

She walks with purpose, signaling for the large entryway doors to open and marches out into the snow covered outside. The light blinding me. I turn my head and attempt to prepare my eyes for the outdoor light. What I see utterly shocks me. The sky is filled with swirling clouds with a lime green hole in the middle. A trail? Pillar? I'm not sure what the word would be to describe the unexplainable scene before my eyes. Surrounding it are rocks simply floating in midair. Filled with shock, I must stare for a long time.

"We call it 'The Breach.' It's a massive rift into the world of demons that grows larger with each passing hour. It's not the only such rift. Just the largest. All were caused by the explosion at the Conclave."

"What kind of explosion could do that?"

"This kind did. Unless we act, the Breach may grow until it swallows the world."

Just then, a rumbling fills the sky, echoing over the little village we're in. Rocks coming down with smoky trails behind them. As if in response, the green mark on my hand lights up, my hand once again consumed with the combination of stabbing and burning pain. A fall to my knees and hear a shriek echo that can only be my own.

I try to clench my fist and dig my nails into my palm, focus on anything but the pain in my hand.

"Each time the breach expands, your mark spreads… and it is killing you. It may be the key to stopping this, but there isn't much time."

"You really think this will work? How will it even help? What will it do?"

"We hope it will close the breach, whether it will actually do that is something we will discover shortly. It is our only chance, however. And yours."

"Do you still really think I did this? To myself?"

"Not intentionally. _Something_ went wrong, clearly."

"And if you decided that I'm not responsible."

"Someone else is. But you are the only survivor, and our only suspect. If you truly wish to prove your innocence, this is the only way."

I take a deep breath, trying to put my thoughts in order. Attempting to find the words, nothing seems to justify the solemn air that surrounds us. I simply nod my head.

She breathes, "Then…?"

"I didn't do this, but if I can help save at least one person, I will. Whatever it takes."

Cassandra stands up and pulls me up by my arm and guides me through the village. Every eye was on me and the glares I received in the church was only a taste of the rage contained by the people of the village. I'm not sure if the best choice here is to keep my head up or look down at the ground. Too afraid to decided on either option, I keep staring at the crowd, bewildered.

"They have decided your guilt, they need it. The people of Haven mourn our Most Holy, Divine Justinia, head of the Chantry. The conclave was hers."

We continue to walk down the path into the woods, while Cassandra explains the situation to me.

"It was a chance for peace between mages and templars. She brought their leaders together. Now, they are dead."

She nods to one of the people outside, and the gates in front of us open to let us through.

"We lash out, like the sky. But we must think beyond ourselves. As she did. Until the Breach is sealed."

She gently stops me and pulls out a small knife before turning to face me.

"There will be a trial, I can promise no more."

At that, she grabs my hands and pulls them forward, cutting the ropes off in one quick motion.

"Come. It is not far."

"What is not far?"

"Your mark must be tested on something smaller than the Breach."

Though she doesn't let me roam around at my own pace or where I want, she isn't keeping directly at my back or side. I can fully see the area, everything is covered in snow, a few torches burning in the distance. Nothing made any sense anymore, I killed a hundred people with nothing but fire from my own hands and now there's a hole in the sky the leads to a world of 'demons'.

A world of demons? Is that where I first woke up? The place with a sickly green sky and burning _things_? I can't ponder on this now, not when my life and the lives of all those people are at stake.

It truly seems like these people all believe that their world is ending. One man is curled up in a ball while others are gathered around what I assume to be a priest, judging by the white and red robes I remember from earlier. He is speaking to the group, performing some sort of prayer I had never heard before.

"Blessed are the righteous, the lights in the shadow. In their blood, the Maker's will is written."

We continue forward, towards another large wooden gate manned by armored men.

"Open the gate! We are heading into the valley."

The path is riddled with barricades made of overturned wagons, men at the ready with swords and shields. There is a group of three running in our direction, and I can hear one call out.

"Maker, it's the end of the world."

I have to save these people because I seem to be the only one who can.

The path is riddled with piles of burning rubble, and I have to wonder exactly how long this has been happening. Exactly how long have these people been suffering?

Again, the sky booms and rocks fall from the sky. There is no time to prepare myself before the pain brings me to my knees, Cassandra helping my up from the ground.

"The pulses are coming faster now."

A statement. There is sympathy in the words, but not the kind that makes me feel weak. She knows that even if I did this, this was not the intended consequence.

"The larger the breach grows, the more rifts appear, the more demons we face."

"If this blast was as catastrophic as it seems, how did I survive?"

"They said you… stepped out of a rift, then fell unconscious. They also say a woman was in the rift behind you. No one knows who she was."

It feels like there's an unsaid part of that statement. That even if no one knows who she was, there are rumors as to who she might be.

"Everything farther in the valley was laid waste, including the Temple of Sacred Ashes. I suppose you'll see soon enough."

The walk is not interesting, the same snowy area and the same panicking soldiers. At least, nothing happens until we step onto a bridge. The breach seems to pulse again, but not in a way the reacts with my mark. Green blasts shoot from the sky, one landing right in front of me. The bridge falls apart and throws us down onto the ice. Another blast lands on the ice, but instead of shattering below our feet, green spikes appear and what can only be described as a demon appears.

Bony, with leathery skin and a face that will haunt my nightmare. This is the true threat here, not the rocks raining from the sky. Cassandra charges off, drawing her sword.

"Stay behind me!"

But the creatures don't stay in front of her, oily black smoke and green light creep towards my feet. Their claws coming out of the ground. I try to retreat, to run until Cassandra can help. I look around, desperate for a weapon of any sorts. A dagger or a sword, even if I have no idea how to wield either. There is nothing and now a demon fast approaching me. I am backed up against fallen crates and barrels and Cassandra doesn't seem anywhere close to being able to help.

And then there's that fire. The wicked fire that has been singing in my veins since I burned all those people. It rears its heading, coming out from the place I tried to bury it to protect me. I stick my hand out and turn my head, hoping that something, anything will happen.

I don't feel the heat, but there's that odd tingle in the air again, only this time it's around my hand. Strong enough that it feels like the air is vibrating. And then the demon is down, only smoke and rags remaining. I pull myself to my feet, just in time to see Cassandra rip her sword out of the body of one of the demons. Finding myself watching it disintegrate into rags below.

" _What_ did you do?"

"Am- am I not supposed to be able to do that? I just did the thing with my hands and then the demon-thingy was dead?"

Cassandra looked at me like I had two heads, which, at this point, didn't seem too unlikely.

"I should bind your hands again, nothing about what you said reassured me. If that was even the intention."

"And what would that accomplish. I haven't done anything to you, and letting me die would just doom all of you."

She sighs, looking resigned. "You're right. You may not need a staff, but you should at least have your magic. I cannot protect you."

She sheathes her sword and continues walking, before turning around in afterthought.

"I should remember you came willingly."

We continue to walk up an icy incline before I notice that Cassandra has stopped and pulled out a few glass bottles filled with a glowing reddish liquid.

"Take these potions, Maker knows what we will face."

"Why haven't we seen any soldiers?"

"They are all at the forward camp, or fighting. We are on our own, for now."

I was left with some potions that I didn't really have a place to put. There were small pockets that I ended up tucking them into, but if this became a thing like I was expecting it to, I would need a pouch or something so I wouldn't constantly worry about them breaking. It was a long walk over ice, during which I somehow didn't fall or even slip once. Cassandra turned us up onto a gravel path and around a ledge, before calling my attention to some demons.

"There! Watch out!"

There are two of the leathery ones at the bottom of the ridge. I really need to come up with better names for these things, cause I sound like an idiot.

"If we flank them, we may gain the advantage"

I really have no idea with to what accuracy I can use this fire magic of mine. But it's the only weapon I have. Only problem is that Cassandra is currently standing on ice. I try to will fire under the demons, but away from Cassandra. From my place on the ledge, I can't see how the ice is reacting The ground under the demon goes up in flames and it dissolves.

Willing the fire to stop is harder, take a different part of my brain to put out. It's helped by the fact that there is nothing for the fire to burn and catch. I take the long way down, positive that there is no way I could make that jump. When I get down, there is a visible dip in the ice where it was melted away.

I have to resist the urge to stare at my hands. What ungodly powers do I have?

The trek to this rift goes on and on, several scuffles with demons. We encounter a new type of floaty green thing. It's less corporeal and I'm hesitant with how to take it down. Burning the physical is easy and mostly instinct, but the more I do it the more I'm aware of it and the more thought it takes to do create fires away from my body.

It turns out that the floaty green things go down if you shoot fire at them long enough. Or, if you're Cassandra, hack at them with a sword long enough.

It's a simple cycle. Walk, fight, breathe, repeat. We finally reach some stone stair and sounds other than that of the wilderness make it to my ears. Cassandra takes it upon herself to call it out.

"We're getting closer to the rift. You can hear the fighting."

"Who, exactly, is fighting?"

"You'll see soon enough. We must help them."

Up the stairs and around the bend, there's a small ledge with two people fighting off more demons. The demons appear to be coming out of a distortion in the air, what I can only assume is this rift. It's like someone cut the air open with the knife and it was bleeding green. Visible distortion surrounded the thing and the strange green rock formations shot out of it at all angles.

There were two people I couldn't quite make out below it, who I assumed were the people Cassandra said we needed to help. I didn't really want to get down into the fray, with no real ability to defend myself up close.

"Get back!" was out of my mouth before I could stop it, and the two figure seemed to get the hint and ran far enough away for me to do something. That sinful song began beating along with my pulse again and I nearly lost myself in its call.

Using the fires that were already burning on the ground, I made them flare up and crawl toward the demons, attempting to get them all in one go. I took surprisingly little energy and actually pushed away the fatigue that was lurking at the edges of my head. Stopping the fires once the demons were dead was harder, making my head pulse and spin.

Once I was sure that the fires were entirely out, I jumped down. Getting a closer look at one of the figures revealed a bald man with pointed ears that stood several inches taller than me.

Wait. What? Pointed ears are not normal, Eve. Don't start going crazy now.

Of all the weird things, that was definitely not in the top 10, so I guess my brain just wrote it off as something to contemplate later. I wasn't left with time to examine the other because Baldy shouted something out.

"Quickly! Before more come through!"

He grabbed the marked hand and held it up to the rift. It was a strange sensation, akin to an old friend saying hello to me. The mark called out to the rift and before I knew it, it was like a muscle I had never used before seizing up. Not pain, but the feeling was nothing close to comfortable. A green tendril shot out of my hand and the whole arm began to vibrate.

It got to a point that I had to rip my arm out of his grasp, and the rift slammed shut, sending out a small banging sound behind it. I simply stared in bewilderment at Baldy, shocked at what had just happened.

"How did you do that?"

"I did nothing, the credit is yours."

I narrowed my eyes at that. He did something or new something about the mark to get it to react like that, there was very little input on my part.

" _I_ didn't do anything. The mark reacted to the rift and you knew how to make it do so."

"Whatever magic opened the breach also placed that mark upon your hand. I theorized that the mark might be able to close the rifts that have opened in the Breach's wake - and it seemed I was correct."

Cassandra piped up before I could say something, what seemed like a small bit of hope creeping into her voice.

"Meaning it could also close the Breach itself."

Baldy replies with the ever-shady, "Possibly," before turning to me. "It seems you hold the key to our salvation."

The forgotten third person chimes in, "Good to know! Here I thought we'd be ass-deep in demons forever." He comes over closer to where we're all standing before looking up at me, shorter than any man I've ever met. "Varric Tethras: rogue, storyteller, and occasionally unwelcome tagalong." He ends the introduction with a wink towards Cassandra, who I can only assume made some disgusted face.

"Are you with the- um, the thingy majiggy… the um- the church-y thing…"

"The Chantry, Wildfire?"

The other man laughs, "Is that a serious question?"

I have to resist the urge to turn and glare at him.

"Technically I'm a prisoner, just like you."

"I brought you here to tell your story to the Divine, clearly that is no longer necessary."

"Yet, here I am. Lucky for you, considering current events."

"It's very nice to meet you then, Varric"

"No need to be so formal and I hope that geniality extends to Bianca."

"Bianca? You don't mean the crossbow?"

"Of course. And she'll be great company in the valley."

Cassandra marched forward, clearly unhappy with this idea. "Absolutely not. Your help is appreciated, Varric, but-"

"Have you been in the valley lately, Seeker? Your soldiers aren't in control anymore. You need me."

Cassandra just makes a disgusted noise and turns away, apparently not having anything to counter his argument.

Baldy jumps into the conversation now, decided that he doesn't want to be left out. "My name is Solas, if there are to be introductions. I am pleased to see you still live."

I turn and stare at him, the shock on my face clear for anyone to see.

"He means, 'I kept that mark from killing you while you slept.'"

"You seem to know quite a bit about the mark, considering nothing like it has been seen before, if I'm correct."

"Like you, Solas is an apostate."

Apostate, that must be the word they use for people who are like me, for people who can do what I do.

"Technically, all mages are now apostates, Cassandra."

Or not. If an apostate is a type of mage, which I must assume is what people like me are called, what makes someone an apostate.

He turns back to me, "My travels have allowed me to learn much of the Fade, far beyond the experiences of any Circle mage. I came to offer whatever help I can give with the Breach. If it is not closed, we are all doomed, regardless of origin."

"So you just happened to be near enough to help during a crisis no one has seen before, with the knowledge that no one else has?"

"Some may say it must be divine intervention or even just lots of luck." He turns back to Cassandra, dismissing me. "Cassandra, you should know: the magic involved here is unlike any I have seen. Your prisoner is a mage, and a powerful one and that, but I don't think any mage could have such power."

"Understood. We must get to the forward camp, quickly."

Solas and Cassandra rush off ahead, while I just stand there in shock.

"Well, Bianca's excited?"

Varric and I begin to walk off before Cassandra ushers us over a different path.

"This way, down the bank. The road ahead is blocked."

"We must move quickly!"

No shit, I get it, Solas. Demons, Breach, last hope, I get it, I'm not stalling for fun.

We have to leap over this wooden fence to get to where Cassandra wants us to go. The walk is long and silent, the unspoken urgency between us driving us forward. This leaves room for little interaction, aside from Solas calling out demons and Varric being snarky towards Cassandra.

Fighting is awkward. We aren't a unit and we don't know who to follow. We end up splitting up and taking on our own enemy, Varric and Solas being the first to down theirs. Varric assists me and Solas does the same for Cassandra.

We follow a path up towards a campsite. What we find are two demons who I quickly take down by flaring up the campfire.

"Where you from, Wildfire?"

I almost don't realize the question from Varric is directed at me for a moment. Taking a minute to realize that he has apparently given me a nickname and wants to know things that are hard to answer.

"Far away. Why?"

It's evasive, and not even plausible but I hope that it will tide him over until I come up with something better.

"It's the accent. I'm from Kirkwall but you accent sounds wrong, farther east but not really. Something's wrong with it and I can't quite place it."

The best lie is always the truth. Audrey said this to me once, but the context was for something far more innocent than this.

"I grew up in a pretty isolated community. I don't really like to think about it much anymore, a lot of tragedy. But since we were so isolated, we probably created our own twisted accent."

We keep going and the Breach expands again, but I guess I've gotten used to the pain because I just grunt and keep going.

"My magic cannot stop your mark from growing further. For your sake, I suggest we hurry.

Up more stairs and clenching my fist to distract myself from the pain, Varric has even more questions.

"So… are you innocent?"

"I didn't do it, but I don't know who did. I can't remember what happened."

"That'll get you every time. Should have spun a story."

"Didn't have time to. First thing that happened when I woke up was interrogation. I was trying to figure out what happened, let alone have the time to make something plausible up."

"Next time, some excuse is more plausible than amnesia and less likely to result in premature execution."

More fighting. More walking. More fighting. Over and over again. I really just want to sleep now. Up another hill. Then we encounter another rift.

"We need to seal it! Quickly!"

The process of closing this rift is different than the previous one. What you really have to do is kill off all the demons that are coming through until they pause long enough to close it. Between the four of us, it's quick work. Attempting to reactivate the mark is a different matter. I try to just hold my hand up but it doesn't work. I attempt to call on those invisible muscles and it sputters to life. It really appears to be a matter of will.

Using the same strategy I've been using for my magic, the mark responds. Holding it up until I can't do so any longer and then pulling it back closes it. Cassandra calls out to the guards.

"The rift is sealed! Open the gates!"

"Right away, Lady Cassandra!"

While we wait for the gates to open, we all take a breath.

"We are clear for the moment. Well done."

"Whatever that thing on your hand is, it's useful."

Through the gates reveals a bridge that is far more organized than the areas closer to the village. I can hear Leliana's voice carrying over to us.

"We must prepare the soldiers!"

A man whose voice I don't recognize replies, "We will do no such thing."

"The prisoner must get to the Temple of Sacred Ashes. It is our only chance!"

"You have already caused enough trouble without resorting to this exercise in futility."

" _I_ have caused trouble?"

"You, Cassandra, the Most Holy - Haven't you all done enough already?"

"You are not in command here!"

"Enough! I will not have it!"

We finally approach the bench and I get a clear view of the man Leliana is arguing with. Dressed in red and white like the women in the Chantry, I assume he works for them. But from what I just overheard, he's only acting like has any sort of power. He looks up and sees us approaching.

"Ah, here they come."

Leliana comes forward to greet us, "You made it, Chancellor Roderick, this is-"

"I know who she is. As Grand Chancellor of the Chantry, I hereby order you to take this criminal to Val Royeaux to face execution."

I almost want to take a step back and run, but Cassandra is looking angrier by the second and I have no doubt that she's going to do the exact opposite.

"'Order me'? You are a glorified clerk. A bureaucrat!"

"And you are a thug, but a thug who supposedly serves the Chantry!"

"We serve the Most Holy, Chancellor, as you well know."

"Justinia is dead! We must elect a replacement, and obey _her_ orders on the matter!"

"So let me get this right, _none of you_ are actually in charge and you all are acting like you are, while ignoring the giant hole in the sky that threatens everyone."

" _You_ brought this on us in the first place!"

I walk forward and slam both hands on the table. "I did no such thing, and you have no real way to prove it. So why don't we stop arguing politics and start doing something worthwhile, starting with sealing the Breach!"

The Chancellor gapes like a fish for a moment and then turns towards Cassandra, electing to ignore me entirely. "Call a retreat, Seeker. Our position here is hopeless."

"We can stop this before it's too late."

"How? You won't survive long enough to reach the temple, even with all your soldiers."

"We must get to the temple. It's the quickest route."

"But not the safest. Our forces can charge as a distraction while we go through the mountains." Leliana counters.

"We lost contact with an entire squad on that path. It is too risky."

Roderick chimes in, his voice filled with cowardice. "Listen to me. Abandon this now before more lives are lost!"

The Breach picks that time to do it's thing, my hand lighting up while I try to suppress it. When it's over, Cassandra turns and looks at me.

"How do _you_ think we should proceed?"

Me? What? That was not part of the plan. Umm. What were the options again? Right, mountain pass or charge. While Charging might mean more protection, it will put me right in the line of fire. But something in the mountain pass is dangerous enough to make an entire squad go missing.

"Let's charge. If something happens, it happens now."

* * *

The first rift we encountered was just like the others, becoming easier the more times we do it. Activating the mark is easier to, becoming second nature. When the rift is sealed, Solas approaches me.

"Sealed, as before. You are becoming quite proficient at this."

"Let's hope it works on the big one."

A blond man I hadn't seen before approaches us. "Lady Cassandra, you managed to close the rift? Well done."

Cassandra turns back to me, "Do not congratulate me, Commander. This is the prisoner's doing."

"Is it? I hope they're right about you. We've lost a lot of people getting you here."

I nod my head in acknowledgment, "I made a promise to Lady Cassandra, Commander. If there is anything I can do to help, I will do it. Even at the cost of my life."

"That is more than I could ask of you. The way to the temple should be clear. Leliana will meet you there."

"Then we'd best move quickly. Give us time, Commander."

As the soldiers begin to run off, he leaves us with a simple parting. "Maker watch over you - for all our sakes."

The ruins of the Temple of Sacred Ashes are nightmares made flesh. Rocks and ashes everywhere and the still burning bodies of people, frozen screaming forever.

"The Temple of Sacred Ashes."

"What's left of it."

"That is where you walked out of the Fade and our soldiers found you. They say a woman was in the rift behind you. No one knows who she was."

I was watching my step, trying not to step on anything or anyone. The temple felt like a graveyard. I didn't even want to breathe it was so creepy. Making it to the where the breach was took my breath away. A smaller fade rift that wasn't currently spewing demons with green trails spiraling upwards to the Breach.

"The Breach _is_ a long way up."

We're all staring upwards, all in shock and awe at being this close to that terrible and beautiful thing. Leliana approaches from behind with some soldiers.

"You're here. Thank the Maker."

Cassandra turns around and gives her some orders, "Leliana, have your men take up positions around the temple."

Leliana nods and turns around, leaving Cassandra to speak to me.

"This is your chance to end this. Are you ready?"

"I'm ready to try anything I can, if I can even reach the breach."

It seems Mr. 'I've-never-seen-magic-like-this-before-but-I-know-all-about-it' has a solution.

"No. This rift was the first, and it is the key. Seal it, and perhaps we seal the Breach"

"Then let's find a way down, and be careful."

As I begin to walk around looking for a way down, this deep voice echoes from nowhere.

"Now is the hour of our victory. Bring forth the sacrifice."

"What are we hearing?"

"At a guess: The person who created the Breach."

We turn a corner and find these glowing red rocks.

"You know this stuff is red lyrium, Seeker."

"I see it, Varric."

"But what's it _doing_ here?"

"Magic could have drawn on lyrium beneath the temple, corrupted it…"

"It's evil. Whatever you do, don't touch it."

With Varric's warning, I stay as far away as possible from the glowing red rocks, careful not to make. Again that voice starts speaking.

"Keep the sacrifice still."

Another voice echoing out, this one female.

"Someone help me!"

"That is Divine Justinia's voice!"

We go down some stairs and we're close enough to the ground to safely jump down. We all approach slowly and the mark lights up in response.

Again, the voice of the Divine echoes out.

"Someone help me!"

But then, my voice echoes too, "What's happening here?"

Cassandra sounds hurt almost, "That was your voice. Most Holy called out to you, but…"

The rift flashes and in front of us are these weird phantoms. A shadow with glowing eyes that must have been whoever opened the Breach. An old woman floating with red energy surrounding her arms. And, finally, me. Torn dress and messy hair, doing something that I don't remember doing.

"What's happening here?"

Divine Justinia calls out to me, "Run while you can! Warn them!"

And the shadow, "We have an intruder. Kill her, Now!"

And then they're gone, leaving us only with more questions and no answers.

"You _were_ there! Who attacked! And the Divine, is she…? Was this vision true? What are we seeing?"

"Cassandra, I promise, I didn't lie to you. I don't remember anything."

While Cassandra and I are staring at each other, hurt covering her face, Solas approaches the rift.

"Echoes of what happened here. The Fade bleeds into this place. This rift is not sealed, but it is closed… albeit temporarily. I believe that with the mark, the rift can be opened, and then sealed properly and safely. However, opening the rift will likely attract attention from the other side."

"That means demons. Stand ready!"

Swords are drawn and bows are readied as I wait for the go ahead to open the rift. Cassandra nods at me and I extend my arm. The rift is practically magnetic, not even requiring my input before it's drawn up and activated. I rip it back and a new kind of demon, bigger than any man if on the field. Cassandra raises her sword and calls out "Now!" and arrows are fired.

The demon is heavily armored, and any pulses of magic bounce right off it. Cassandra tells me to strip its defenses and I do the only thing I know how. I'm not trying to seal the rift, but just mess with it and the demon's connection to it, when I rip my hand away the demon falls to its knees, vulnerable.

This process is repeated several times, broken up by running away from the beasts lightning whip. Smaller demons pour through and I take my attention off the big one to quickly take them down. Again and again, until there are no more demons on the ground. When I try to seal this one, it's like being pulled it. The rift is strong and I have to physically resist being pulled in.

When I jerk my arm back, I can see it close and the green trail evaporate. And then nothing.


End file.
